THIS YEAR'S ENTRY

 SELECTION
Serbia broadcaster RTS decided on a smaller selection process to find its 2010 Eurovision entry. They recruited Serbia's most successful songwriter, Goran Bregović to write three potential Eurovision entries, to be performed by three different performers. These songs competed in the Serbian final which was held on March 13th at the RTS TV Studios in Belgrade and hosted by Maja Nikolic. The winner was chosen by text voting, and the clear winner was  "Ovo Je Balkan" (This Is The Balkans) performed by Milan Stankovic.

 BIOGRAPHY
Two popular artists, one younger, one older, both extremely talented - this is what Serbia decided to send to the Eurovision Song Contest this year.

Milan Stanković shot to fame from a Pop Idol-like contest in Serbia. The 22-year-old star achieved victory at almost every stage of the contest back in 2007. Since that year he's become very successful, known for his eccentric dressing style and distinctive looks.

His debut album, Solo, sold quickly 50,000 copies and brought him a lot of fans. He leaves no one indifferent - some love him, others challenge his fame. But one thing is certain - the media and the fans follow closely his every step.

His song was written by the renowned composer Goran Bregović. He's been called the founding father of Yogoslav rock scene. Besides being very successful in music, he's also a famous film director, having received many prestigious awards. His song "Djurdjevdan", as well as some other of his compositions, are known in the history of film as a light motive from the cult film "Borat".

He's also composed music for theatre and has even written an opera, called "Karmen with a Happy Ending". Until now it has been performed more than 150 times in metropolis all over the world.

Goran Bregović is an honorary citizen of Buenos Aires, Athens and Tirana. He was also granted an honorary doctorate by the British University of Sheffield.

 REACTION
"Ovo Je Balkan" was not the favourite to be the Serbian entry, but Milan Stankovic's uniquely androgynous look has certainly drawn attention to the song. Milan has recorded several different language versions of the song and performed the Spanish version on Spanish television, but the song has received mixed reactions in internet voting.  

The bookmakers have been more favourable, making Serbia one of the favourites to qualify from the first semi-final, although it can still be backed at 80/1 to win the contest.

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